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Friday, 1 May 2015

Day 21 - Ea Drang to Buon Ma Thuot (BMT)

With
a motivated and thorough stretching of our Gluteus Maximuses we left the one
road town of Ea Drang on the way to our final rest stop of Buon Ma Thout, the
coffee capital of Vietnam.This stretch
of road was beautiful, but in an unremarkable way; much like that of a person
remarking on the beauty of a cashier, after judging a modeling
competition.As shallow as that might
sound, it is only because of the beauty we had already experienced, that I can say
it with the utmost conviction and without any doubt.

What
did stand out from the ride were the road conditions, it was our first time
riding on sticky tar, which if you haven’t done, I don’t recommend doing.It gets everywhere, piercing lycra,
saddlebags and gear sets alike, it is a new level of dirt and unpleasantness
that can only be rivaled by the poor decisions of drivers that seem to be
ubiquitous in larger Vietnamese cities (perhaps something a bit more
challenging that a figure of eight is necessary to determine ones dexterity of
piloting any sort of vehicle).On a more
positive note we hit a slight sloping twenty kilometer descent into BMT, which
was much appreciated as we seemingly glided in like Vikings on the wings of
Valkyries en-route to Valhalla, to feast on the plunder of our last rest day.

“The Ede
name translates as ‘Thuot’s father’s village’, but Buon Ma Thuot has outgrown
its rustic origins without acquiring any real charm. An affluent, modern, but
rather characterless city (pronounced ‘boon me tote’) it is inundated by
traffic from three highways.”

- Courtesy of Lonely Planet

While someone was a bit grumpy on their visit to Buon Ma Thout,
The H2H team wasn’t.With its wide sweeping
boulevards and its entrance adorned with a much appreciated Co-Op mart (this
rider needed rum and deodorant) and a Rolls/Tootz certified KFC, the team was
in good spirits, much of which were to be purchased later and poured down
parched throats.Our final rest day was
upon us, it was appreciated indeed, however with the ride nearing it’s close it
was bittersweet; like the coffee BMT is known for, it was delicious albeit
acidic, burning all the way up to the sub cockles of the heart.

After settling in to our hotel and performing the innumerable
“S’s” that one becomes accustomed to when living on the road (showering, shaving,
sink-washing kits and sleeping) the lads had a bit of a round table going,
where we discussed rugby and the problems facing our world today; which if
you’re a Brit the two often coincide.We
were shortly joined by Top Man Tootz and the rest of the team, at which point
we piled into cabs and headed off to our first stop; a local BBQ joint.

Simply put the meal was a bit of a blur.I remember the food being great (even the
vegetarian options, albeit even those had meat cleverly snuck in) and the
service being better.Ike was in common
Papa-Bear form socks and shoes strewn about a chair while doing his cool down
stretches in a Hawaiian shirt and waxing poetic about Wi-Fi passwords.With our spirits soaring, inhibitions dulled
and inebriation imminent we set off to experience Asian culture at it’s most
distilled; in the form of a karaoke booth.

After being corralled into a “VIP” karaoke booth we did the
impossible, drunkenly deciphered Vietnamese karaoke software in the hopes of
finding songs we not only understood but knew.George being a man of his years and paying no regard to Canada’s only
war-crime, decided to play the Bryan Adams discography complete with B-sides
for us to sing.After quickly being
rebuked for his poor decision making the night carried on the only way it
could; with much table dancing, “seductive” stripping, unfortunate repeats of
Oasis songs and team leader Steak providing us with an interesting interpretation
of AC/DC’s Hells Bells.The night, as
it must, was finished off with a touching ballad of Bohemian Rhapsody, a cacophony
of shouts and gestures that the all-knowing Karaoke machine awarded with a
98%.

We got back to the hotel early for Saigon and not being tired we
walked the streets of Buon Ma Thout. However, after a few kilometers of
darkness, George our Brew-kowskian hero of the cool night decided he had had
enough and headed back, defeated by the lack of BMT’s nightlife while Carolyn
and I walked well into one of the final mornings of the ride.

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What H2H Is

H2H - Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City - is a charity bicycle ride that first took place in 2009. It is organized by volunteers and the funds raised go towards Vietnamese organizations that work with poor and disadvantaged children. The ride lasts for a month, and takes place every April. If you'd like to learn more, contact h2h.ride@gmail.com.